Technology & Science
January 22 2026: Private Capital and Governments Ignite New Nuclear Build-Out Wave
A flurry of same-day moves—from Alibaba’s $35 m JV and Equinix’s Singapore SMR study to the US, Philippine and Vietnamese siting pushes—signals that both tech giants and states are accelerating concrete investments and policy steps to bring new fission capacity online within the next decade.
Focusing Facts
- Alibaba’s subsidiary Shanghai Yiqi registered Zhonghe (Xiangshan) Nuclear Energy on Jan 22 with capital of ¥250 million (≈US$35 m) to co-develop a commercial reactor.
- Holtec filed to restart the 800 MW Palisades plant and add two 300 MW SMRs, targeting regulatory approval by 2029 and grid power by 2031.
- Philippines’ DOE identified Bataan, Pangasinan, Camarines Norte, Palawan and Masbate as viable reactor sites and aims for 1.2 GW of nuclear generation by 2032, rising to 4.8 GW by 2050.
Context
The sudden multi-front nuclear push echoes the early-1960s “Atoms for Peace” boom—when 30 reactors were ordered in the US in 1967 alone—yet arrives after four decades of stagnation following Three Mile Island (1979) and Fukushima (2011). This resurgence rides two structural forces: (1) an AI-driven spike in 24/7 electricity demand that intermittent renewables struggle to cover, and (2) decarbonisation mandates that have turned even former skeptics like Vermont and Vietnam back toward atomic options. If private tech firms can mass-produce SMRs the way Henry Ford did cars, capital costs could finally fall—reversing the historical trend of ever-pricier plants—but the economics, waste politics and proliferation risks remain unresolved. On a 100-year horizon, January 2026 may be remembered as the inflection where nuclear power shifted from state-centric megaprojects to a mixed public-private, globally dispersed model—one that could either anchor a low-carbon grid or multiply geopolitical and safety dilemmas last seen during the Cold War.
Perspectives
Business and investor-oriented media
e.g., The Wall Street Journal, The Business Times, Chosun.com — Present nuclear power – from small modular reactors to corporate joint-ventures – as a practical, profitable and low-carbon solution to booming electricity demand and data-center growth. Coverage tends to highlight commercial upsides, national competitiveness and tech optimism while giving limited attention to unresolved costs, safety or waste concerns repeatedly raised by independent experts.
Left-leaning or progressive U.S. outlets and local watchdog press
e.g., CNN, VTDigger — Warn that the SMR ‘renaissance’ and state moves to re-label nuclear as clean energy are over-hyped, expensive and could divert money from cheaper renewables while introducing new safety and waste risks. Stories regularly foreground critical experts and rate-payer advocates, so economic downsides may be amplified and potential climate or reliability benefits of nuclear understated.
Catholic peace-advocacy media
e.g., Vatican News — Press nations to honor disarmament pledges, framing any modernization or expansion of nuclear arsenals as a grave moral failure that endangers humanity. A faith-based moral lens elevates abolitionist ideals and can underplay the geopolitical deterrence arguments governments invoke to justify retaining nuclear weapons.